Latest news with #PalestinianIslamist
L'Orient-Le Jour
8 hours ago
- Politics
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Salam's first visit to Paris: Security, stability, reforms on agenda
French President Emmanuel Macron will meet Thursday at the Élysée Palace with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, who is making his first official visit to France, to discuss security issues in the country and the 'major regional challenges,' the Élysée announced Tuesday. 'The discussions will focus on security, the country's stability and the pursuit of the vital economic reforms necessary for the full restoration of its sovereignty and prosperity,' said the French presidency, citing, in particular, the strengthening of the Lebanese armed forces. 'The two leaders will also discuss the need for full respect of the cease-fire, particularly concerning the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces,' the Élysée added. Israel carries out near-daily strikes in Lebanon, claiming to target fighters and infrastructure of Hezbollah, and has warned these attacks will continue as long as the group is not disarmed. Lebanon is also mired in an economic crisis, which many Lebanese attribute to endemic corruption and decades of mismanagement within its institutions. President Joseph Aoun, elected in January, and the new head of government, Nawaf Salam, who has been in office since February, have pledged to make the fight against corruption a priority as part of the reforms demanded by international donors. Macron and Salam will also discuss the 'major challenges' facing the Middle East, particularly the consequences of the war in Iran and Gaza, as well as recent clashes in Syria, the Élysée added. They will stress the 'urgent need for a complete cessation of hostilities in the region to protect civilians and the absolute urgency of massively and unimpededly delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.' Besieged by Israel since the outbreak of war in October 2023, the approximately 2.4 million inhabitants of the 365 km2 territory face severe shortages of food. Israel, which is only allowing aid in limited amounts, accuses the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas of exploiting civilian suffering by diverting aid.
L'Orient-Le Jour
5 days ago
- Politics
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Latin Patriarchate announces 3 deaths in strike on Gaza church
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem announced Thursday the death of three people in an Israeli strike on the only Catholic church in the Gaza Strip, which has served as a refuge for this small community since the beginning of the war 21 months ago. Israel, which is at war with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza, said it "never targets" religious sites in the Palestinian territory, adding it was "reviewing" the circumstances under which the church was damaged. According to local Civil Defense, a total of 25 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Thursday in the Gaza Strip, where the war began after an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. "This morning, at around 10:20 a.m., the Holy Family Complex in Gaza City [north], belonging to the Latin Patriarchate, was struck by the Israeli army," the Latin Patriarchate said in a statement. "At this time, three people have lost their lives as a result of their injuries, and 10 others have been wounded, two of them in serious condition," it added, revising upward a previous toll of two dead. The church, which is sheltering hundreds of displaced people, suffered damage. Since the beginning of the war, Father Gabriel Romanelli, who was wounded in the strike, had been regularly communicating by video link with former Pope Francis, who died in April. Inside Gaza City's Al-Ahli hospital, the wounded are receiving care in tents. Among them is Father Romanelli, with a bandage around his leg. Some wounded arrived on stretchers. One is wearing an oxygen mask. Other Palestinians wept beside bodies covered with white mortuary bags lying on the ground. 'Unacceptable' "In the morning, a tank targeted us and hit the church. Several civilians were killed and wounded," Shadi Abou Daoud, a displaced person whose 70-year-old mother died in the strike, told AFP. According to the Patriarchate, "targeting a sacred site that is sheltering around 600 displaced people, mostly children, is a flagrant violation of human dignity ... and of the sanctity of religious sites, which are supposed to provide safe shelter in times of war." The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, told Vatican News: "What we know for certain is that a tank directly hit the church. The Israeli army says it was by mistake, but we are not sure." Pope Leo XIV said he was "deeply saddened" and renewed his call for an "immediate cease-fire" in Gaza, where indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel over a truce are at a standstill. Israel expressed its "deep sorrow" over the damage and civilian casualties, adding that the army was investigating. "Israel never targets churches or religious sites and regrets any damage to a religious site or uninvolved civilians," the foreign ministry said. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni accused Israel. "Israeli raids on Gaza have hit the Church of the Holy Family. The attacks on the civilian population carried out by Israel for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such behavior." 'Apologies' France condemned the "unacceptable" bombing of the Church of the Holy Family. The priest, pastor of the Holy Family parish for many years, remained in Gaza alongside some 400 faithful after the war broke out. The small Catholic community found refuge within the church compound, which also sheltered Orthodox Christians. The Gaza Strip has about 1,000 Christians out of a population of more than two million people, besieged by Israel since October 2023 and on the brink of famine, according to the United Nations. Most Christians are Orthodox, but according to the Patriarchate, about 135 Catholics live in the Palestinian territory. "One can wonder if Israel is targeting Christian communities ... This is a place of worship. There was no strategic objective; there were no jihadists in this church. There were families, civilians," Monsignor Pascal Gollnisch, director general of Oeuvre d'Orient, told AFP. The Oct. 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas and launched in retaliation a devastating offensive in which at least 58,667 people, mostly civilians, have been killed, according to Gaza Health Ministry data regarded as reliable by the United Nations.
AsiaOne
6 days ago
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Mediators present updated Gaza ceasefire proposal to Israel and Hamas, Axios reports, World News
WASHINGTON — Qatar, Egypt and the US presented Israel and Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas with an updated Gaza ceasefire proposal on Wednesday, Axios reported on Thursday (July 18), citing two sources. The two main updates in the latest proposal had to do with the scope of the Israeli military's withdrawal from Gaza during a ceasefire and the ratio of Palestinian prisoners to be released for each Israeli hostage, Axios reported. The Qatari prime minister is expected to meet with Hamas leaders in Doha on Saturday in an effort to get their agreement to the updated proposal, the report added. Israel previously insisted on maintaining a presence in a zone stretching 5km north of the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border and has now reduced that demand to 1.5km, closer to Hamas' demand that Israel withdraw to the same position as under the last ceasefire, Axios reported. US President Donald Trump met with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani on Wednesday. Israeli and Hamas negotiators have been taking part in the latest round of ceasefire talks in Doha since July 6, discussing a US-backed proposal for a 60-day ceasefire. A previous two-month ceasefire ended when Israeli strikes killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18. The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, Israeli tallies show. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's subsequent military assault has killed over 58,000 Palestinians. It has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations. [[nid:720297]]
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Mediators present updated Gaza ceasefire proposal to Israel and Hamas, Axios reports
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: Smoke rises in Gaza after Israeli airstrikes as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Gaza border, July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo WASHINGTON - Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. presented Israel and Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas with an updated Gaza ceasefire proposal on Wednesday, Axios reported on Thursday, citing two sources. The two main updates in the latest proposal had to do with the scope of the Israeli military's withdrawal from Gaza during a ceasefire and the ratio of Palestinian prisoners to be released for each Israeli hostage, Axios reported. The Qatari prime minister is expected to meet with Hamas leaders in Doha on Saturday in an effort to get their agreement to the updated proposal, the report added. Israel previously insisted on maintaining a presence in a zone stretching 5 km north of the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza–Egypt border and has now reduced that demand to 1.5 km, closer to Hamas' demand that Israel withdraw to the same position as under the last ceasefire, Axios reported. U.S. President Donald Trump met with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani on Wednesday. Israeli and Hamas negotiators have been taking part in the latest round of ceasefire talks in Doha since July 6, discussing a U.S.-backed proposal for a 60-day ceasefire. A previous two-month ceasefire ended when Israeli strikes killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18. The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, Israeli tallies show. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's subsequent military assault has killed over 58,000 Palestinians. It has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations. REUTERS
Perth Now
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Perth Now
Israel proposes withdrawal of more troops from Gaza
Israel has presented a new proposal in indirect talks over a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict, according to a media report. The Jewish state is now willing to withdraw more troops from the Gaza Strip during the ceasefire than previously offered, the Times of Israel newspaper reported, citing an Arab diplomat. Indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in the Qatari capital Doha have recently stalled. A key sticking point is the differing views on the extent of the Israeli troop withdrawal, particularly from the southern Gaza Strip. Israel had previously been adamant that its forces remain in a relatively large area, including a three-kilometre wide buffer zone along the border with Egypt near Rafah, as well as the so-called Morag Corridor, which separates Rafah from Khan Younis, the next second city in the coastal strip. Hamas, however, has demanded the withdrawal of Israeli forces to the positions they held before the collapse of the last ceasefire in March. Under the newly reported proposal, Israel would reduce its military presence to a two-kilometre-wide buffer zone along the southern border near Rafah. However, according to the Arab diplomat cited by the Times of Israel, it is doubtful whether this concession will lead to a breakthrough in the negotiations. Israel's wish to maintain its military presence in southern Gaza is linked to plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to establish a camp there for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, media reports say. Critics describe this as an internment camp that could ultimately lead to forced deportation. Israel, however, refers to it as a "humanitarian city" intended as a base for the "voluntary departure" of Gaza's residents. Israel's war on Gaza, which followed the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks by Hamas and other Islamist militants, continues to lead to consternation at the United Nations. UN Secretary General António Guterres said in New York on Monday: "We all condemned the horrible, terrible attacks of Hamas, but what we are witnessing Gaza is a level of death and destruction that has no parallel in recent times." Separately, Egypt's foreign minister said the flow of aid into Gaza has not increased despite an agreement last week between Israel and the European Union that should have had that result. "Nothing has changed (on the ground)," Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told reporters ahead of the EU-Middle East meeting in Brussels on Monday. The EU's top diplomat said the bloc and Israel agreed to improve Gaza's humanitarian situation, including increasing the number of aid trucks and opening crossing points and aid routes. Asked what steps Israel has taken, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar referred to an understanding with the EU but did not provide details on implementation. Asked if there were improvements after the agreement, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told reporters that the situation in Gaza remains "catastrophic". "There is a real catastrophe happening in Gaza resulting from the continuation of the Israeli siege," he said. with Reuters
